


Blues (of the deep south)

by Darling_please_do



Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst, Breakfast, Canon Compliant, Complete, Family, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Impel Down, Late Night Conversations, Light Angst, No beta we die like ace, its always love luffy hour on the sunny, talks of impel down and the two year time skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:35:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27204629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darling_please_do/pseuds/Darling_please_do
Summary: It's only ten years, Ivankov had told him. Onlyten.And Sanji wanted the earth to open up and swallow him then and there because ten years without Luffy is ten more than Sanji cares to stick around for.orSanji and Luffy have a late night conversation about time and how much of it they've lost.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat Pirates, Monkey D. Luffy & Vinsmoke Sanji, Monkey D. Luffy/Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 23
Kudos: 212





	Blues (of the deep south)

**Author's Note:**

> Obligatory Disclaimer! I own nothing! 
> 
> Anyway, here's Wonderwall

__I'm gonna bury these bones  
I'm gonna write it in stone  
That you were my home  
My home

-Brighton

It's the sound that wakes him, a low grumble in the otherwise silent cabin. Well, silent aside from the usual chorus of snoring but Sanji's brain is so accustomed to those sounds he's learned to tune them out completely.

But if he focuses, he knows who else is awake just by counting the noises.

Luffy's snore is absent, and that can only mean one of two things; the captain is either suffering a nightmare, or he's woken up hungry despite dinner having only been a few hours ago. Both situations are equally plausible these days, happening with enough frequency that Sanji is used to waking at this time of night to count his nakama's breathing.

The cook waits and he listens for the all too familiar whimpers of a bad dream or-

The rumble again, a little louder this time.

Sanji exhales, relief leeching the tension from his body. So the captain is hungry. That's something he can help.

They've been back together for nearing a month now, and already they've experienced sailing under the sea and meeting mermaids, a thing Sanji has fantasized about ever since hearing of their existence from sailors passing through the Baratie. One month and so much has happened. Only a month.

Time has more meaning now than it used to, ever since Ivankov arrived on Peachy Island bringing with him news of Sanji's boy captain who had gone off to war without them, who infiltrated Impel Down and left with ten years less on his lifespan.

He slides out of his bunk with practiced ease. As he rises the wood creaks but thats the only noise he makes, moving in silence to fish a pack of cigarettes from his cubby. Even after two years the Sunny hasn't changed, not like her crew, not like their swordsman with one less eye and the captain who now sports a nasty scar across his chest.

Sanji tries not to look at it much, tries not to think of how thin and frail Luffy's ribcage felt under his palm all those time he fished the rubber boy out of the sea. He can't think about any of that, because if he does he might start thinking of the marine admiral that kept attacking even after Luffy was unable to fight back, he might think about Ace's picture in the paper and that god awful hole burned right through the tattoo he'd been so proud to show off in Alabasta. And if he thinks about that, any of it for too long, well he might jump ship right now and go murder that bastard- _consequences be damned._

He doesn't bother changing out of his pajama's. There will be time in between Luffy's snack and the beginnings of breakfast for him to worry about being presentable.

Instead Sanji soundlessly makes his way out of the cabin, knows that the captain will be awake soon and he will need to have something to serve him. Zoro shifts in his bunk as the chef passes and Sanji knows he's not asleep, ever aware of the crew and their surroundings. If it had been a nightmare disturbing the quiet of their cabin Zoro would be the one up right now, or at the very least he'd be waiting for Luffy to stir himself wake if only so he could quietly make room in his hammock and usher the rubber boy over.

The swordsman rolls onto his side but doesn't acknowledge Sanji, doesn't even bother opening his eye. He knows who's up, and he knows well enough where the chef is headed. Sanji waits, and a petulant, childlike part of him wants to ask _Do you know about it? All those years we've lost with our captain?_

He can't imagine what the swordsman would say- or rather he can and doesn't want to hear it, the building dread or even _worse_ , quiet acceptance.

The chef keeps it to himself, watching long enough for Zoro's breath to even out before climbing up onto the deck.

The moon isn't quite full but it casts plenty of light, enough that Sanji can find his way around without hassle. From the sound of it Brook is on watch tonight, and he seems to be in good spirits if the soft melody is anything to go by, not exactly cheerful but comforting, familiar.

Sanji makes his way into the galley, flips the light on without looking and quietly slides the window open to let in the sound of Brook's playing.

The kitchen welcomes him the same way it always has, with a comforting hint of spices and the promising shine of dishes ready to be dirtied. It's cathartic to be back in his own galley after such a long time away.

After that first year passed he began to fret over it- what if he started to forget? Small things at first, like who was it that hated marshmallows so much, and why is he hesitant to add in mushrooms even when the recipe recommends it? Even that wasn't so bad, except one morning he woke and he was already carefully spooning tangerine sauce over a roasted duck when he realized that it was Nami's favorite meal and he hadn't thought of her once. 

Eventually he had taken to keeping a small recipe book to help track the crew and their preferences. He's filled at least ten pages with mentions of Luffy but he's never had to look back on those notes because In all this time he hasn't forgotten a single thing about his captain.

It's too late now for a midnight snack. By the time Luffy gets here it'll be more like pre-breakfast breakfast.

So morning foods then. Sanji unlocks the fridge, chest strangely tight as the deadbolt falls away. The metal feels especially heavy in his palm, and the cook tries not to imagine a time when this lock is no longer needed.

The thought is so viscerally upsetting that it steals his breath away, and Sanji sets the dead bolt out of sight with more force than necessary.

He pulls a carton of eggs from the fridge, along with most of the ham he'd recently finished curing. He's just cracked the first egg when he hears rubbery footfalls approaching the galley.

A moment later the door creaks as its opened, and he can hear Luffy yawning. The captain chirps a cheerful greeting as he takes a seat at the bar, barely awake but always happy to lay eyes on his nakama.

This is their special routine. Luffy has one for each of them, sets time aside to do things like carry Nami's mikan basket while she prunes or harvests; hands Usopp his tools while their sniper works on new gadgets. He does it for Franky sometimes too, but the cyborg doesn't allow him in the shop when he's working with anything dangerous-almost always.

That aside, even the most independent of them get the same treatment. For Franky it's his hair. The captain really loves his hair. The color and the texture and everything Franky can make it do, so it shouldn't have been so surprising the first time Luffy proclaimed it mystery hair and begged to be allowed the job of brushing it.

"Mmm Sanji, smells good!" Luffy's voice is scratchy, slurred from sleep. The sound of it causes Sanji's lip to twitch, and he smiles without meaning to. It's a normal thing. Luffy jumps at any chance to praise his crew, even for the simplest of tasks.

Even so, it never fails to ignite a spark of pride in the cooks chest.

Sanji hums, turning his head just enough to see the wild dandelion mess of Luffy's hair. The rubber boy has his cheek resting against the table. He smiles when he catches Sanji staring.

"How do you want your eggs this morning, captain?" The cook asks, his voice bordering on fond. Later in the afternoon Luffy will hang off his arm and beg for snacks, and Sanji will growl and snap and bark but it's all just for show because they both know he really doesn't mind.

"Ohhh, can they be scrambled?" The captain picks his head up, eyes suddenly taking on a bright sort of shine. "The eggs are always so fluffy that way! You make 'em like little clouds!" Luffy coos dreamily, the way he does right before his mouth starts to water.

"They can be scrambled." Sanji agrees, already reaching for a spatula.

"Ah! Can I have some meat too?"

"Of course, captain." The blonde gestures to a finely cut piece of ham, already settled on a pan and intended for the stove. "Like I'd ever forget the meat."

He watches as Luffy all but melts into the counter top, a soft little smile on his face. "I know Sanji wouldn't forget. It's still nice to ask though. Ace said to always be polite when someone is making you food."

Sanji startles at the mention of Ace, comes very near to dropping his spatula into the eggs on accident. No one says that name. Luffy hasn't talked about it, and everyone else is careful to step around it even when mentioning the great war or discussing their time spent apart. But here they are. The sun's not even up yet and Luffy says his brothers name like it's an easy thing, all soft adoration and no trace of the grief Sanji had been expecting.

The cook glances back at him, folded into himself and slumped against the bar. He's so goddamned small, Sanji can't understand how he can be so strong and so- _so small_ at the same time. He fought a crocodile in the desert and a god in the sky but somehow with his knees tucked in and his shoulders drawn up he's no bigger than Nami. If Sanji were to reach out and press his hand against the boys chest he knows his fingers would span across Luffy's entire ribcage.

Behind him the captain is humming, a happy little tune. Probably something he's picked up from Brook. If he notices how Sanji tensed at the mention of Ace then he doesn't let on. It's quiet but not uncomfortable, broken only when another yawn hits the air. Normally the captain would've slept for at least two more hours, but Sanji supposes all that fighting they did against the marines yesterday had burned more than he'd been able to replace at dinner.

He's on the verge of suggesting Luffy try and rest until he finishes cooking, but the rubber boy's voice fills the galley before he has a chance.

"Did you hear where Usopp got sent? He said it's name but I can't remember what it was. Some kind of archipelago like Sabaody, but he says it wasn't made of land. And there was a forest! But not just any forest, he said this one grew lots of food! Like a river of ramen! Isn't that so cool??"

Luffy tells him about Usopp's new special stars and all the different foods that grew in the jungle their sniper landed in, how badly he wished he could've seen it too. The captain has been going through them all one by one, asking where they went and what they did for the two years they were away. He is all wide eyes and wonder when they tell him, but sometimes Sanji notices a sad little tilt to his mouth.

The captain missed them more than he lets on, and thats saying alot because he lets on every day. Says it plainly over lunch, his gaze open and loving as he attempts to steal food from Zoro's plate. for the most part he's easily deflected, but Robin and Zoro spoil him sometimes and Sanji will act like he doesn't notice unless he feels like Robin is giving too much away. Luffy laughs even as he gets his hands swatted by the cooks favorite spatula, declaring again how he missed them, how happy he is to have them home on the Sunny. 

Sanji thinks about this as he sears ham and finishes preparing a simple plate of scrambled eggs. It's too early for it to matter, but Sanji still takes the time to add a garnish so the dish looks more exciting. And he's rewarded for it as he turns to settle the plate in front of his captain.

"Ohhh!" Luffy sits up immediately, lips stretching into an unnaturally large smile. "It looks so good! Kinda like the White Sea huh?" The boy compliments, carefully nudging his plate just enough to make the eggs jiggle. "Guess that means the ham is Gods Land then!" Luffy snickers joyfully, already reaching for the meat in question.

And Sanji is taken aback by that. So much has happened since their adventure to the sky, sometimes it feels more like he dreamed it all up. But then he remembers the taste of blood and burnt cigarette filter on his tongue, the sound of a bell as Luffy knocked a false god from the very sky he claimed to rule. Just one of the many miracles he's witnessed in this boys presence.

There's an audible gulp as Luffy finishes the ham, eyes flickering up to watch his cook. It takes a moment for Sanji to realize the sounds of eating have stopped. He glances down to find that Luffy is looking at him, face painfully open and full of adoration. There's a beat of silence, and then the captain is reaching for his hand.

"Thank you." Luffy says softly, eyes crinkling around the edges as he smiles. "You always take such good care of me-Of _us_." The rubber boy amends, nodding thoughtfully.

He notices small things, like that Sanji only buys the best cuts of meat even though Luffy himself would be happy with scraps. And every week he does a special meal for the crew, and its always somebody's favorite dish and he never forgets any of them. Even Zoro doesn't get left out. Just last week they had white rice to go with the sea king Luffy caught, and the captain didn't say anything about it but he saw that Sanji wasn't stingy with the sake as he would normally be inbetween islands.

"We're so lucky to have you, Sanji!" Luffy tells him earnestly, callused rubber fingers kneading Sanji's palm in a way that makes the cook sigh, content even despite the way his heart thuds painfully fast against his ribcage. "I got the best cook in the whole wide world."

"Yeah well." Sanji looks down at their conjoined fingers, and again he wonders how hands so small could hold so many dreams. "I guess my captain isn't so bad himself." The cook tells him, and Luffy thinks his cheeks look kinda pink under the soft glow of galley lights.

"Anyhow, go ahead and eat before the eggs get cold. They wont be as good then."

Luffy snorts, releasing Sanji's hands in favor of snatching up his fork. "They're gonna be delicious regardless because you made 'em."

Sanji cant help but smile, ruffling the boys hair affectionately before turning to start the dishes. There's only a few from what he'd just used, but he likes to keep a clean work space and it'll only take a moment. There's a soft clicking behind him, the distinct sound of cutlery scraping against porcelain plates as Luffy starts to dig in.

"Chopper said he went to a place with giant birds and some weird tribe of people who kept trying to eat him at first! And they were all fighting each other but Chopper helped make peace." Luffy explains proudly between bites.

"And Nami went to a sky island! Now she's been up there twice, huh? Lucky!" Luffy chatters happily. "She said a bunch of old men taught her some stuff about the weather so now she's an even better navigator! And I didn't even think that was possible. Isn't Nami amazing Sanji?"

"Mhm. She is incredible." The cook agrees without ever looking up, chest heavy with some nameless emotion.

"Ohh and Robin met my dad! Isn't that funny? She went to some place called Balto-"

"Baltigo." Sanji corrects absently, smiling down at the dish in his hands.

"Mhm, Balto. Thats what I said! Anyways, I never really thought about my dad much but I'm really glad he was nice to Robin or else I'd definitely have to fight him."

That draws a little chuckle from the chef, because of course Luffy would fight his father for one of their crew. That man might be related by blood but Luffy has proven that blood isn't what makes a family. Sometimes it's as simple as sharing a dream. Other times it's a jollyroger emblazoned with a strawhat, carried on the waves by a faithful ship.

"It's crazy how much everyone has grown in two years. You guys are all so cool!" He makes it sound like such an accomplishment. But to Sanji two years is a long time. Add that to the ten lost in Impel Down and it's starting to seem like Luffy could disappear at any moment. Like one day the years spent without him will outnumber the years they had with him.

It's unbearable to think about, and Sanji has the sudden urge to tell Luffy that he has to be more careful going forward. Any more years off his life and Sanji might never sleep again, if only to make up for all the time they're going to lose.

"You know," The cook starts carefully, unable to stop himself. "I was sent to Peachy Island."

"Peachy Island?" Luffy picks his head up, instantly curious. "That sounds kinda familiar." The rubber boy tries to grasp at wisps of memory, but they are all wound too tightly with echoes of war. Those days all seem to overlap in his mind, mingling into a bone deep nothingness.

"Did alot of peaches grow there?"

"No." Sanji snorts. Dishes are done and put away too soon. The cook fidgets, finds himself growing apprehensive without anything to do with his hands. "Its also known as the Okama Kingdom."

"Ohhhh that's where Ivankov is from!" Luffy brightens, his voice much louder than it needs to be with the sun not even up yet. Sanji tilts his head, regarding the boy quietly as he puts two and two together.

"Does that mean you met Iva-chan? I think Jinbe said he was headed back there after the war." The captain shovels another spoonful of eggs into his mouth.

"I did. He taught me some new recipes to help us out. Including that one with the sea pork you like so much after a fight."

The rubber boy _oohs_ softly around a mouthful of food.

Sanji could leave it at that, but he's already gotten this far and he has a feeling that if he chickens out now he wont ever be able to bring it up again. "He also told me some stuff about how you guys met."

"Ah." He can hear Luffy swallow, sudden and startled. "You mean in Impel Down?" He asks, and it doesn't bother him-talking about it. But his crew don't seem to enjoy hearing about it, so lately no one's been asking and he's carefully stopped telling.

"I do." Sanji reaches into his pocket, retrieves his lighter and a pack of smokes like this is a casual conversation. It might be, if his hand's weren't shaking so damn much.

The captain goes mostly still, considering Sanji silently as he gnaws on a small bone. Its all thats left of the ham he'd been served five minutes ago.

"You heard about the warden, huh?" Luffy relaxes all at once, and the cook has a feeling he's been expecting this conversation.

Sanji finally turns to face him.

"Ivankov said you almost died- _should've died_." The chef lights a cigarette, and Luffy waits because Sanji seems like he needs a minute. It's quiet for the time it takes Luffy to polish off his plate of eggs, and then-

"He said some other stuff, too."

Luffy hums, eyes drawn to the flame dancing in Sanji's hand. Soon the galley swirls with a thin wisp of smoke. Luffy likes the smell of nicotine, reminds him of Party's Bar and Makino's kind smile. Shanks and his crew singing sea shanties, laughing as they took the time to teach him because he wanted so badly to sing along with them.

"Stuff like the ten years off my life thing?" The rubber boy guesses, always straight to the point.

Sanji flinches to hear it said out loud.

It's only ten years, Ivankov had told him. Only _ten_. And Sanji wanted the earth to open up and swallow him then and there because ten years without Luffy is ten more than Sanji cares to stick around for.

The cook puffs on his cigarette. "Yeah, he might've mentioned that."

Luffy nods. "And you're upset."

It's not a question but Sanji answers him still.

"Well yeah, _yes_. I am. That-That's _ten whole years_ without you." Sanji emphasizes, taken aback because Luffy is obviously not grasping what his loss would do to them. They might stay a crew in their grief, or they might not. Sanji knows he's at least heard the swordsman say he has no business being a pirate without a rubber captain to follow.

"Have you told anyone else?" Luffy asks softly, his expression strangely blank.

"No." Sanji says quickly, stung that Luffy even had to ask- maybe a bit guilty because he _had_ wanted to tell. And surprisingly he'd come the closest to mentioning it with Zoro, because even if it's the damn marimo he felt the need to tell _someone_. And Zoro has this way of silently rallying the crew. He can tell them without actually telling them how badly they need to be better-

Because Luffy isn't slowing down, and he doesn't ever think of himself in a fight.

"I haven't but you should. At least tell Chopper." He adds weakly, heart thumping wildling against his ribcage, weighted down by a grief that shouldn't even exist because Luffy is here, he's not dead yet and he wont be for a long time to come.

"Why? Chopper cant do anything about it. " Luffy shrugs, a heart wrenching dismissal. He's looked into it, Sanji realizes with a start. "All he'll do is cry and work himself sick trying."

The cook feels something facture behind his sternum. So its irreversible then. Ivankov said as much but it wasn't the same as hearing it from the captain's mouth, and the hormone user refused to give him any more details. Sanji chews on that information, and it makes him understand Luffy's unwillingness to tell. He doesn't like it but he understands. It would only cause the crew to suffer, and do weird things like corner the rubber boy before dawn to bring up Impel Down.

"Are you mad?" Luffy tilts his head in a way that allows dark bangs to hide his eyes. He looks so young like this, and Sanji knows he's waiting to be scolded but all the cook wants is to reach out and hold him.

He crosses the galley before he even realizes he's moving.

Luffy surges forward to meet him halfway, but Sanji is already there before he has the chance to get up from his perch at the table. The cook lets Luffy wind rubber arms around his middle, once, twice, three times over. There are fingers curled into the back of his night shirt, Luffy's face pressed into the space beneath his heart. And he was so engrossed in thinking of the crew and what they would do without him, he never stopped to imagine what it's like for Luffy to be the one leaving.

Fucking of course he's afraid they'd be mad. Luffy isn't the type for regrets but he is still a captain, aware that all of his decisions have consequences for the crew and they had no say in this.

"No, I'm not angry..." He doesn't love any of his family the way Luffy loved Ace, he doesn't even like them, and yet-

"I get why you did it." Sanji doubts he'd be able to walk away from them either, in life or death circumstances. Even under the threat of losing a few years himself, even if they don't deserve it.

"I understand that part and I know the whole situation was impossible and unavoidable but I just- you gotta start taking better care of yourself, you know?"

"I know!" The captain agrees easily. And it occurs to Sanji then that he's the one being comforted here, because Luffy-

Luffy is _okay_. He's somehow made peace with what he lost and now his only concern is moving forward with their crew. Sanji was foolish to think him upset. This entire conversation, the rubber arms wrapped snug around his waist, it's all for his benefit, so he can sleep easier at night. The captain has a funny way of giving them what they need without them ever noticing it.

"You don't gotta worry about me, Sanji. I got stronger, and I'm better now. I had to be reckless that day because they were gonna take Ace but," He trails off, and for just a moment Sanji catches a glimpse of his grief as the boy remembers a freckled face and _thank you for loving me_. It's gone before he even realizes what he's seen, tucked away in Luffy's heart to serve as a reminder.

There is a price to be paid for losing. So he won't ever lose again.

"But Ace is gone now and I gotta stick around for our crew! I mean, If I wasn't here Nami wouldn't have anyone to yell at, and im always first to check out Franky's new inventions!" The captain unwinds himself in favor of pumping a fist into the air, devotion carved into the lines of his face. "I nap with Zoro and fish with Usopp and play with Chopper! Sometimes I stay up with Brook when it's his turn on watch so he's not too lonely. Oh, and Robin likes it when I listen to hear read. Plus I love your food more than _anyone._ "

The cook listens to him prattle on and he smiles, because its so endearing that those tiny things are what Luffy thinks they'd miss. They would of course, with every fiber of their being, but there is so much more about him. His absence would be a black hole in the universe.

Sanji's seen that Luffy seeks Brook out when the ship is quiet, just to remind him that Laboon is still out there, and sometimes he tells the skeleton about how they met at the entrance to the grand line and even though Brook's heard the story a thousand times he still cries when Luffy mentions his promise to return, and the rubber boy thumbs his tears away without pausing in his explanation of how they're going to cross over the second half soon and fulfil that promise.

He is the reason that Franky invents _at all._ The cyborg does so much for them now, it's easy to forget that when they met him he'd completely given up on the art of creation. 

And _yes_ , Luffy plays tag and fishes with Chopper and Usopp but more than that it's the encouragement he gives them, always spouting off about how amazing they are over the smallest things. Sanji has seen that Chopper giggles and waves him off, but Usopp goes still, the words like salve to an anxious heart. Robin looks at the captain like he hung the moon, and whenever someone tells a joke her eyes find Luffy first. She likes to see him laughing.

Sometimes Sanji brings Nami tea to find Luffy sprawled out on the floor in her little map making room. He points to places they've been, places they'll go. And he turns his head and grins at them both, talks about how one day they'll find All Blue and Nami can put that on a map, too.

With Zoro it's not anything in particular. He and Luffy have this strange almost cosmic magnetism about each other. That mosshead can get lost on the Sunny, but he somehow always finds his way to Luffy. And it's a subtle thing, but Sanji's noticed. Zoro is always within calling distance, and Sanji has never been sure of what the captain is to that marimo but now he thinks maybe Luffy is a homing beacon. Zoro's north star.

For Sanji himself Luffy is the reason he's seen more than the little piece of ocean where the Baratie sails. And more often than not the rubber boy is the reason he loses sleep, usually up late planning meals and waking early to start them so that their glutton of a captain never goes hungry. But he's also up on the evenings after a battle because Luffy has pushed himself too far and his breaths come weak and rasping. He didn't rest for days after the paper came out, detailing a war in which their captain lost everything.

His sleep was erratic at best over those two years of training and waiting, mind caught wondering where his crew were sent. If they're eating well.

He wondered who was feeding his captain.

Because Luffy is family, A brother he never had but desperately wanted. Someone he dreamed of when there was metal biting into his face, and Judge's words still rang sharp in his ear. Luffy is a miracle just as much as he's a monster.

So it does upset him to think of losing time with his captain. The boy who gave him a home, who begs him for snacks and croons about pirate lunches, who gives more than he takes and smiles like its the other way around.

"Sanji?" Luffy's voice startles him, and Sanji realizes that he's gone quiet again. The captain tips his head, patiently waiting for a response. "Are you okay? Still upset?"

He looks cautious but ready, prepared to fix or fight anything his chef may be suffering from and Sanji doubts he will ever stop thinking about those ten years they've lost. At night he counts them up in his head, adding a few days for each time he's seen Luffy use a gear. And he wonders if anyone else knows and they're just not saying, like he knows and keeps quiet himself.

 _We should protect him better_ , Sanji thinks bitterly, heart strings pulled too tight.

"Im okay," he says finally. "I was just thinking about what I should make for breakfast."

Luffy brightens at that, feet kicking excitedly under the table.

"Ohh! Are you taking requests because bacon sounds amazing! Sausage too. Oi, what about pancakes?"

Sanji huffs, fondness flooding through him like nicotine after a long day. "I think I can manage some bacon and pancakes." He thinks about losing Luffy ten years too soon, thinks of his kitchen cold and empty in the early mornings, no one to beg for pre-breakfast snacks.

"I guess I could throw on some sausage too." Sanji says, chest swelling at the smile it earns him. The days have always been numbered, that's not really anything new. He'll just have to make the best of them.

**Author's Note:**

> Yooooo im Savvy and I pepper a little angst into everything I write. One Piece in particular because Luffy is lowkey tragic and it should be addressed more. He is selfless to the point of being self destructive! And I want the crew to acknowledge that so badly!! 
> 
> My first choice for this fic was actually Zoro, but there is so much unpacking to do there and i'm still not settled on how he'd take this information. An absolute myriad of emotions and none of them good. I do hope to explore Zoro and the rest of the crews reactions eventually. 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed! All comments are loved and appreciated. You guys are the greatest! Lyrics used in the beginning are from Forest Fire by Brighton.
> 
> I am a plant, please water me.
> 
> [Tumblr](https://darlingpleasedo.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Darlingpleased1)


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